Valve structure for aerosol container



March 25, 1969 D. B. GREEN VALVE STRUCTURE FOR AEROSOL CONTAINER FiledMay 3, 1967 United States Patent 3,434,695 VALVE STRUCTURE FOR AEROSOLCONTAINER Derek B. Green, Manchester, N.H., assignor to ScovillManufacturing Company, Waterbury, Conn., a corporation of ConnecticutFiled May 3, 1967, Ser. No. 635,772 Int. Cl. F16k 13/00; B6511 83/16 US.Cl. 251-349 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The invention relates tovalves for aerosol containers and particularly to a structure which canbe molded as one piece and serve all of the purposes of a valve, valvestem, valve housing, container cap and means for attachment to anaerosol can.

There have been other attempts to make a cheap aerosol valve by reducingthe number of parts through utilization of molded pieces, the bestexamples being illustrated in the following patents: Spiess et al.,2,761,593; Edwards, 2,854,176; Focht, 2,985,342; Quercia, 3,081,917.

Such prior attempts have not been satisfactory, either because theystill required a number of parts and assembly operations, or becausethey were useful at best in only a limited field or not applicable tostandard aerosol cans.

My invention provides a complete valve structure that can be molded asone piece and then be easily manipulated into .shape to serve as a valvecapable of a wide variety of uses. This molded piece has a hollow stemadapted to fit with any of the common forms of actuator buttons toproduce the desired spray pattern. There is included, in the same piece,a rim adapted to be fitted over the rolled bead of a standard aerosolcan in such a way as to withstand all normal pressures in the container.At the same time the structure may be made so as to pop off the can ifthe pressure approaches a dangerous level. The valve also lends itselfto pressure filling through the stem. The invention thus provides anaerosol valve having many advantages while attaining what would appearto be the utmost in economy of manufacture.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown for purposes of illustrationone embodiment which the invention may assume in practice.

In these drawings:

FIG. 1 is a central vertical section showing the valve structure readyfor use on an aerosol can and fitted with an actuator button;

FIG. 2 shows the stem tilted to open the valve;

FIG. 3 is a central section showing the piece as it is initially molded;

FIG. 4 shows the piece after the cylindrical skirt has been rolled downand the first step in assemblying to a can; and

FIG. 5 indicates the final step in the assembly.

Only a portion of an aerosol can is indicated in the drawings with a topwall and the usual rolled bead 11. The valve structure as seen in FIG. 3is molded from a suitable pliable plastic material such as polyethylene,which is flexible in the thinner sections and comparatively rigid in thethicker sections. A cylindrical valve plug 12 has a closed bottom 13, avertical passage 14 and a radial passage 15 leading from the verticalpassage to a circumferential groove 16. The passage 14 continues througha hollow stem 17 and over the open end of this stem is fitted anactuator button 18. As the piece is molded, the skirt 19 is a flexiblecylindrical wall extending upwardly from the plug 12 around the stem 17.Projecting outwardly from what is the upper end of the skirt as it ismolded, is an annular wall 20 which is made of conical shape initiallyflaring downwardly. Around the outer edge of the annular wall 20 is acircular rim 21 which may be described as hook-shaped in cross-sectioninitially opening downwardly so that it can be pushed vertically overthe bead 11 on the can as seen in FIG. 4.

The skirt wall 19 is thin and flexible enough so that it can be rolleddown over the plug 12 from the position of FIG. 3 to the position ofFIG. 4 and this wall is dimensioned so that it will be slightlystretched to embrace the cylindrical surface of the plug 12 in tightsealing relationship and close off the groove 11 leading to the passages15 and 14. An annular shoulder or lip 22 engages under the slug 12 afterthe skirt 19 is folded down. While the shoulder 22 may serve as afulcrum during tilt action of the valve, it can be made to yieldoutwardly on vertical action to allow the groove 16 to communicate withthe interior of the aerosol can.

Although the annular wall 20 is thicker than the skirt 19 it is stillsufliciently flexible that it can be snapped down from the position ofFIG. 4 to the position of FIG. 5, thus inverting the conical section andswinging the hook-shaped rim 21 around the bead 11. This will bring theinner portion 23 of the hook-shaped section in position to engage underthe rolled head 11 to resist separation by pressure of the contents ofthe can. If desired a suitable sealing compound or adhesive may beemployed between the rim 21 and the bead 11.

The valve may be opened by tilt action of the stem in any direction. Asseen in FIG. 2 this is possible due to the resilient properties of theskirt 19 and the Wall 20, which act as a spring to return the parts tosealing'position when pressure is released from the actuator button 18.When thus tilted the valve may be said to move off its seat (which isthe skirt 19), and allow pressure fluid to flow into the groove 16,passages 15 and 14 and the hollow stem 17 to the nozzle passage 24 inthe button 18.

In cases where a dip tube is desired it may be attached to the shoulder22 in any suitable manner, for example, by adhesive.

In pressure filling, with the button 18 removed, the pressure of theinfiowing fluid will push the flexible skirt 19 away from the groove 16and allow flow around the plug 12 into the can.

The thickness of the annular wall section can be made so that it willnot move appreciably under normal pressures inside the can but yet bulgeoutwardly under abnormal pressure enough to pop the entire valvestructure off the can to prevent an explosion as when the can issubjected to excessive temperatures.

What I claim is:

1. A one piece valve structure for aerosol containers consisting ofpliable plastic material and comprising (a) a central cylindrical valveplug having a closed bottom and communicating passageway means openingthrough the top and radially outwardly through the outer cylindricalsurface of said plug;

(b) a flexible skirt integrally joined to the top portion of said plugand snugly embracing said cylindrical surface to serve as a valve seatnormally closing off said radially opening passageway means;

(c) an annular wall projecting outwardly from the bottom portion of saidskirt; and

(d) means around the outer portion of said annular wall for securing thestructure to an aerosol container.

2. A one piece valve structure as defined in claim 1 wherein there isfurther provided an integral hollow stem communicating with saidpassageway means and extending upwardly from said valve plug.

3. A one piece valve structure as defined in claim 1 wherein saidannular wall is initially of conical shape flaring downwardly from saidskirt and wherein said securing means is in the form of circular rim ofhook- :shaped cross-section initially opening downwardly for easyassembly by vertical movement over a rolled head of an aerosol can; saidannular wall being sufficiently flexible so that after such initialassembly, the central part of the structure may be pushed downwardly tosnap such annular wall to an inverted conical position and swing saidhook-shaped rim around said head whereby the inner portion of saidhook-shaped section will engage under the bead to resist separation bynormal internal can pressure.

4. A one piece valve structure as defined in claim 1 furthercharacterized by an annular shoulder at the bottom of said skirtprojecting inwardly to engage under said cylindrical plug.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,004,018 6/1935 Strauss 251349XR 2,704,622 3/1955 Soffcr 251349 XR 2,729,368 1/1956 Lapin et al 251349XR 2,739,841 3/1956 Soffer 251 349 XR 2,901,153 8/1959 Collins 251349 XR2,936,935 5/1960 Rabb 251349 XR 3,081,917 3/1963 Quercia 222-3943,333,744 8/1967 Nilsen et al 251353 XR 3,357,604 12/1967 Barker 251349XR SAMUEL SCOTT, Primary Examiner.

